Welcome — and welcome once again — to Ithaca and Fall Creek. Land of the free: we never know what incredible throw-aways will turn up on the curbsides. Home of the brave: it takes a courageous soul to survive the long winters, the lack of affordable high-speed Internet, and the indigestible fare at the Ithaca Cafe: https://ithacacafe.com/ .
Recently, our Fall Creek Discussion list reached another milestone: more than 2,100 members are now subscribed to this list.
By popular demand, we now have a revised and updated version of the List Guidelines and Best Practices (GABP). Conveniently located, always at your fingertips, on this web page, here:
https://fallcreeksuperlist.com/ithaca/fc-list-guidelines/
Many thanks to members of a Test Group who, with their careful readings and valuable suggestions, helped me to fine tune these guidelines and best practices. Please read these GABP ASAP, and then contact me if you have any problems or suggestions.
And now, two personal messages, which do not need to be read, and can be ignored with no tangible side effects …
Chess Club: Ithaca has a new chess club: chess playing can enhance your concentration, relaxation, and creativity. We meet once every week, usually on Sundays: for more information visit the website:
Courage and Kindness for These Times
During the past two years — with simultaneous assaults from the Pandemic/Corona-virus, Women’s Rights challenged, gun violence, the Ukraine war, environmental problems, inflation, and more — this world, and these past years have seemed rife
with an unusual and stressful kind of chaos.
Which all, somehow, by a colossal misconnection in my neural network, makes me think about some famous quotes:
By the novelist Kurt Vonnegut (revised slightly by me):
Be soft.
Do not let the world make you hard.
Do not let the pain make you hate.
Do not let the bitterness steal your sweetness.
Take pride that even though the rest of the world may disagree, you still believe that this world is a beautiful place.”
And the American psychologist William James:
“The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind.”
And (finally) these words from a letter from my wise and wizened grandfather, when I was too young to understand them:
“Stay true to your authentic self. Every day, find the countless
opportunities to smile, to laugh, to share praise and kind words, to make positive changes, and to secretly do good.”
As always, I am enthusiastic about our vast collective potential to share information, exchange ideas, build a better neighborhood and a more caring city, and help one another with challenges large and small.
Michael Pastore
Fall Creek Discussion List Owner and Manager
14 September 2022